By: Jade Simms

This image shows us a neatly trimmed shrubPhoto taken at Thomas Moreno Landscape Nursery — *This image shows us a neatly trimmed shrub*
*Photo taken at* *Thomas Moreno Landscape Nursery*

The North American Native Ilex vomitoria, Is commonly known as Yaupon Holly. This broadleaf evergreen shrub is often referred to as a small tree due to the possibility for it to grow over 20 ft. tall. However, with the right pruning this shrub can also become a beautiful topiary like Buxus sempervirens (Boxwood). The yaupon holly is a native to North America and can be found growing dry, sandy locations. From the Texas east coast continuing until reaching the northern parts of Florida, then spreading even further north as far as Virginia, Ilex vomitoria has no difficulty adapting to different soil varieties and time exposed to sunlight.

The inflorescence found on yaupon holly.Image taken by Camelia TWU — *The inflorescence found on yaupon holly.*
*Image taken by* *Camelia TWU*

Yaupon is a part of the Aquifoliaceae family, and like many other plants in that family this holly has glossy, green leaves that have a leathery quality to them. With a simple leaf type and an alternating leaf arrangement, this holly shrub resembles most found in landscape designing. In the spring around April, the flowers begin to bloom in colors of green and white. There is another added bonus for any gardener; they are pollinator attractors and they also emit a lovely fragrance. Ilex vomitoria will require both male and female plants to produce fruit due to its dioecious nature. This also means only female plants will fruit. The fruit that yaupon holly produces is known as a drupe and is up to ¼ inch in diameter. Usually the drupe found on this plant is red but can sometimes be yellow. Inside the shiny, spherical fruit there are 4 nutlets. These tiny fruits persist through the winter and can attract birds.

Here we see the heights Ilex Vomitoria Image taken by J. Reimer and C. Stubler — *Here we see the heights Ilex Vomitoria*
*Image taken by* *J. Reimer and C. Stubler*

While there are plenty of benefits for gardeners when considering Ilex vomitoria, yaupon holly can also be used as a natural wind barrier to protect delicate annuals, create privacy blocks, and even topiary sculptures. The reason why Ilex vomitoria is perfect for these roles is the erect, multi-trunked, stem. Additionally, this holly is densely branching and while this makes it another perfect candidate for a hedge, it also makes it more strenuous to prune. Don't worry, all your hard work will be paid off when your hedge starts to fruit those bright, red drupes we described. These ornamental fruits are known to be mildly poisonous and Native Americans would crush these drupes with leaves from the plant to create a substance to cleanse the body, thus the name vomitoria. However, this toxin is not found in the leaves but something much more enticing, caffeine! Ilex vomitoria leaves can be plucked at a young age then oven dried. Once browned, the leaves can be steeped in boiling water to make yaupon tea. While also presenting a little energy boost with caffeine, it also brings a smile to the pioneer at heart.

This hardy and drought resistant shrub gives landscapers and gardeners a long-lasting, evergreen shrub that's great for catching for the human eye and pollinators' senses as well. While being able to maintain fruit through the winter and to bloom fragrant flowers in the spring, this plant has even one more attribute to solidify why you need one in your landscape.